Mr. John Vivenzio manages GNYHA Services' Supply Chain Resources Division where he oversees the contracting, clinical and diagnostic services contracting teams. Mr. Vivenzio also directs a team of subject matter experts and leads GNYHA Services' regional contracting strategies, which result in even more significant financial benefits for member participants. Prior to joining GNYHA Services in 2002, Mr. Vivenzio was the Vice President of Regional Network Operations at Joint Purchasing Corporation in New York City where his responsibilities included the operation of cooperative joint ventures with regional health systems in New Jersey and Indiana. Prior to that, Mr. Vivenzio served for a decade as the Associate Vice President for Support Services at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, where his areas of purview extended to state-wide operations on five campuses. Mr. Vivenzio earned his B.A. from Richmond College, Staten Island, NY, and his Masters of Professional Studies from New School University, New York City.
Mr. Bob Karcher joined GNYHA Services in December 2006 and serves as the Vice President of Contracting. He has applied his 30 years of experience in hospital supply chain management to developing new and enhanced contract relationships for the GNYHA Services portfolio. Prior to signing on, Mr. Karcher was the supply chain executive at The Mount Sinai Hospital, where his 24-year career included not only supply chain management, but administration of many support departments, including sterile processing, housekeeping, patient transport, food services, clinical engineering and pharmacy. He served as the supply chain executive during the five-year merger of the Mount Sinai and NYU systems, where he integrated contract portfolios, logistics and information systems across the five-hospital IDN. Mr. Karcher’s first post-graduate career was as an adjunct lecturer of English at CCNY. In 1976, Mr. Karcher left teaching to begin a thirty-year career in hospital supply chain operations at Lutheran Medical Center, Brooklyn where he first encountered GNYHA as a representative to the Purchasing Committee.
Mr. Praful Shah has worked with GNYHA Services since 2004. Mr. Shah is responsible for all of the clinical diagnostic contracting and service offerings for the laboratory and radiology programs. He also represents GNYHA Services member’s interest on a national basis with Premier’s Laboratory Committee. Prior to joining GNYHA Services, Mr. Shah held dual positions of Vice President of Ancillary Services and Vice President of E-Commerce for Joint Purchasing Corporation, a regional group purchasing organization. There, he developed, established, and branded these service offerings to acute and alternate care members. Prior to that, Mr. Shah was the Director of Ancillary Services at Mount Kisco Medical Group, P.C., a large multi-specialty, multi-site physician group practice, where he operated an extremely profitable laboratory and radiology service. Mr. Shah earned his B.S. from Gujarat University and his D.M.T. from KM School of Post Graduate in India.
Mr. David Zimba, an experienced senior supply chain executive, currently serves as GNYHA Services Vice President, Custom Contracting. In this role, Mr. Zimba provides contracting expertise for individual members in strategic categories, primarily physician preference products and other large spend areas. In addition, he organizes the recently launched Committed Volume program. Prior to joining GNYHA Services, Mr. Zimba served as Vice President of Corporate Contracting for the West Penn Allegheny Health System where he directed the organization’s supply chain transformation through the implementation of e-sourcing, e-procurement, and e-materials that produced 95% customer satisfaction while reducing annual recurring supply chain expenses of $105 million. In 2008, Mr. Zimba was named a “Supply Chain Maverick” by Healthcare Purchasing News. In 2007 the same publication named him a “Healthcare Supply Chain Influencer to Watch.” In 2006, Mr. Zimba was named the “Most Wired Supply Chain Innovator” by Materials Management in Healthcare and identified as one of the Top Ten People to Watch by The Journal of Healthcare Contracting.
Mr. Tony Bertuch joined GNYHA Services in 2004. Mr. Bertuch is responsible for the day to day operations of GNYHA Services’ Regional Contracting Program. Prior to joining GNYHA Services, Mr. Bertuch was Assistant Vice President, Regional Network Operations at Joint Purchasing Corporation, where he managed a program of customized contracting services for a select group of clients. Prior to that Mr. Bertuch was Purchasing Director at Our Lady of Mercy Healthcare System. Mr. Bertuch is a Certified Purchasing Manager and holds an undergraduate degree from SUNY Alfred.
A part of the GNYHA Services team since 2007, Ms. Michelle Pollack, R.N., works with several of our Integrated Delivery Network members to help them maximize their GNYHA Services/Premier contracts and benefits, and provide ongoing supply chain strategy support. Ms. Pollack also develops imaging programs to bring value to members and contract suppliers such as technology updates, educational programs, and quote analysis. Prior to her current position, Ms. Pollack worked in imaging for 15 years, first as a magnetic resonance sales specialist with GE Healthcare, then as a Toshiba America Medical Systems CT sales specialist. Prior to that, Ms. Pollack, a registered nurse, brings 10 years experience as a nurse manager at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Ms. Pollack earned a Bachelor of Science in nursing from New York University.
Ms. Chotkowski joined GNYHA Services in 2008 as Director, Clinical Contracting. She is a health care executive with extensive experience in surgical services and ambulatory operational leadership and management. Ms. Chotkowski has served in multiple leadership positions and committees in the private and public sector at the university, community, and system level. Most recently, she was executive director of Perioperative and ICU Services at the North Shore–Long Island Jewish Medical Center System. In her administrative practice, she demonstrated expertise in creation of physician alignment in surgical service line product choices, project development and implementation, space redesign and work process flow, physician recruitment to elevate best practice standards and response to patient population needs, sponsored quality Initiatives, creation of flexible budgets, and leadership mentorship to align organizational and divisional goals.
She earned a B.S. in Nursing at the Hunter-Bellevue School of Nursing in New York City, as well as a M.S. in Health Care Administration from Hunter College. Ms. Chotkowski is a member of the American Organization of Nurse Executives, Greater New York Chapter.
Mr. Jay Edmond has worked with GNYHA Services since 2005. Mr. Edmond is responsible for GNYHA Services' Food and Nutrition program, which includes Client Services and Regional Contracting. Prior to joining GNYHA Services, Mr. Edmond worked for U.S. Foodservice for six years as the Director of Healthcare, managing all the health care accounts in the northeast region. Prior to that, Mr. Edmond worked for Aramark Corporation for 10 years. There, he managed multiple departments, including Food & Nutrition, Environmental Services, Linen and Laundry, and Transport. Mr. Edmond received his B.A. in financial management from India's Madras Christian College. He also earned his M.A. in food service administration from New York University.
Mr. David Wolf joined GNYHA Services in June 2007. Prior to joining the Strategic Contracting Services division, Mr. Wolf served as a Client Service Executive responsible for servicing GNYHA Services’ member accounts in Long Island, Queens, and Brooklyn, working collaboratively with Materials Executives to reduce supply and equipment expenditures and improve supply chain efficiencies. Prior to that, Mr. Wolf worked as a Senior Financial Analyst providing the analytics necessary to enhance the GNYHA Services regional contracting effort and also assisting our members to maximize the value of the GNYHA Services Group Purchasing Program. Before joining GNYHA Services, Mr. Wolf spent more than five years as both an equity analyst and trader on Wall Street. Mr. Wolf earned his B.S. in Economics from New York University.